TV

Meet the star players under tonight's 'Lights'

By Diane Holloway
AMERICAN-STATESMAN TELEVISION WRITER
Monday, October 02, 2006

The Dillon Panthers finally take to the field tonight with the debut of NBC's "Friday Night Lights."

By now you must be keenly aware that this new series, which has received high praise from Los Angeles to New York and all points in between (including right here), is based in Austin. The pilot was shot here in February and March, and subsequent episodes are being filmed here, too.

Inspired by Pulitzer Prize-winner H.G. "Buzz" Bissinger's book and the 2004 movie, the series, about the passionate high-school football culture in small-town Texas, is set in the present. The book and movie, of course, were about Odessa's Permian High Panthers' dramatic run for the 1988 state championship.

Tonight's pilot introduces the main characters, from the coach and his family to the team and their families and friends. And, yes, that really is Longhorns coach Mack Brown in the booster club scene.

In case you missed our review in the Aug. 27 fall TV preview, "Friday Night Lights" is one of the season's best new series. The football action is fantastic, but it is the heartfelt drama about family and friends that scores extra points.

If you miss tonight's pilot, don't worry; NBC is saturating the airwaves with repeats: 7 p.m. Wednesday and 8 p.m. Saturday. No excuse for missing it altogether.

The principal cast is large and likely to grow as we meet more denizens of Dillon. So we thought we'd introduce them before they hit the gridiron. Here's our pregame program:

Eric Taylor (Kyle Chandler)
Dillon High's new football coach, who must cope with molding his players into a winning team while dealing with heavy pressure from the town to bring home a state championship.

Tami Taylor (Connie Britton, reprising her role from the movie)
The coach's supportive wife endures pressures of her own as a mother to teenager Julie and a new member of Dillon's sometimes catty social scene. The big smile and "Hi, y'alls" are just the surface of this richly drawn character.

Jason Street (Scott Porter)
The hunky, endearing team captain and star quarterback who feels the weight of Dillon's dreams on his padded shoulders. He's the guy who has it all: looks, talent, personality, adorable girlfriend. But perfection, we all know, is fleeting. (Sports fans will catch the allusion to the Longhorns sports dynasty with the same last name.)

Brian "Smash" Williams (Gaius Charles)
Cocky and talented, Smash is the team's feared running back. On Friday nights the whole town loves him, but undercurrents of racism are bound to bubble up sooner or later.

Tim Riggins (Taylor Kitsch)
Another Panther running back, Tim sees Smash as more of a rival than a teammate. Tim is the wild child, the long-haired guy who looks like an Abercrombie & Fitch model and sees himself as a tough-as-nails rebel.

Tyra Collette (Adrianne Palicki)
The blonde hottie of the group is, you won't be surprised to know, Tim's girlfriend. At least for now. She dresses provocatively and flirts a lot, but we'll probably find there's more to her than meets the eye.

Matt Saracen (Zach Gilford)
The backup quarterback doomed to life on the bench, he's the guy in the shadow of Jason Street's blinding spotlight.

Lyla Garrity (Minka Kelly)
Jason's loyal girlfriend who, of course, is a cute-as-a-button cheerleader with scads of friends and a bright future.

Julie Taylor (Aimee Teegarden)
The coach's daughter is not a big fan of football or the high-school football culture. Something of a bookworm, Julie hovers on the outside of the popular Panther-loving in-crowd.

Landry Clarke (Jesse Plemons)
The best friend of backup quarterback Matt Saracen, Landry is not a football player, but he sure looks like one. He's a big, lovable lug. Could he be drafted before the season is out? Maybe.

dholloway@statesman.com; 445-3608